7 teams the Rangers could do business with

We know the Rangers will bring in new players through at least two avenues this summer.

The first is the NHL Draft, which is set to take place at the Sphere in Las Vegas on Friday and Saturday. The second is free agency, which will open at noon on July 1.

Those events are locked in on the calendar, with Blueshirts team president Chris Drury sure to use both to acquire pieces for the present and future. But there is a third method of player acquisition with a much more fluid timeline and potentially franchise-altering implications.

The trade market is the great unknown of the offseason. General managers will make tons of calls and float all kinds of ideas, but very few materialize into agreed upon deals.

That makes it difficult to predict. Many teams will go the entire summer without executing any trades of consequence − but for the Rangers, who have multiple positions they’d like to fill and limited salary cap space to do so, additional creativity may be necessary to round their roster into Stanley Cup form.

Their trade chips are somewhat limited, but belief around the league is that both forward Kaapo Kakko and defenseman Jacob Trouba are available in the right deal. Restricted free agent Ryan Lindgren could fall into that category, as well, along with this year’s first-round pick at No. 30 overall and any prospect not named Gabe Perreault. No one should be stunned if Drury parts ways with a core veteran, either, although odds are significantly longer for those holding either full or partial no-movement clauses.

“Everything’s on the table,” he said earlier this month.

League sources who spoke to lohud.com, part of the USA TODAY Network, believe there’s a better than 50% the Rangers pull off at least one trade this offseason, with Kakko the betting favorite to go if it involves an active roster player leaving New York. But opinions vary about which team they’re most likely to find common ground with.

Source: Alexis Lafrenière, Rangers holding off on contract extension talks

Drury has gained a reputation for thoroughness, so you can be sure he’s exploring all options in his effort to turn the Presidents’ Trophy winners into champions. Based on what’s buzzing around the league, what I’m hearing and my own dot-connecting, here are seven teams the Rangers have reason to check in with:

Anaheim Ducks

The Ducks are desperate for defensemen, and while there’s a decent chance Trouba has them on the 15-trade no-trade list he’ll be submitting by July 1, Lindgren could definitely have some appeal. We also know there were discussions involving Kakko prior to the March trade deadline.

Meanwhile, Anaheim has a few interesting forwards who could be shipped east.

Frank Vatrano is an obvious candidate the Rangers have ongoing interest in. He’d be a cost-effective 1RW as he enters the final year of a deal that pays him $3.65 million, but the Ducks have a handful of younger options.

Would Drury take a chance on Bedford native Trevos Zegras? It would be a cool story, but the 23-year-old’s finesse game doesn’t quite jive with the “heavier, more physical” style the GM has stated he wants to achieve. That gives me pause.

Leo Carlsson, the No. 2 overall pick in last year’s draft, is surely off limits, but is there a world where Anaheim entertains offers for any of a young forward trio that includes Sam Colangelo, Cutter Gauthier and Mason McTavish?

Calgary Flames

The Flames have been open for business for a couple years, with rumors swirling that the next departure will involve winger Andrew Mangiapane. He potted 35 goals in 2021-22 to earn a three-year, $17.4 million extension, but has seen those scoring totals dip to 17 and 14 the last two seasons, respectively.

The 28-year-old has still registered 40 points or more for three consecutive years, brings plus speed and could be an effective addition in the right situation. But unless Calgary is willing to retain part of his $5.8 million cap charge, that money may be better spent on a more consistent offensive force.

Yegor Sharangovich is an intriguing name who had better production last season. He’s also in the final year of his deal but comes with a more manageable cap hit of $3.1 million. The Flames may be inclined to hold the 26-year-old winger after he posted a career-high 59 points (31 goals and 28 assists), but he figures to be a trade chip at some point if they don’t make progress on an extension. Maybe that time is now.

Colorado Avalanche

Like the Rangers, the Avalanche are very much in win-now mode. That makes them unlikely to trade a useful player for future assets, but perhaps there’s a hockey trade to be made.

Center Ross Colton is rumored to be available and would provide the two-way depth New York needs down the middle. Would Kakko and the resulting cap savings – he’s set to make $1.6 million less than Colton next season – be enough to entice Colorado into a swap?

The main hesitation for the Rangers would be their own multi-year financial plan. Colton is on the books for three more seasons at an average annual value of $4 million, which could be problematic when their expected cap crunch for the 2025-26 season comes into play.

Nashville Predators

I’m not sure if there are any players on the Preds’ roster who are available and make sense for the Rangers, but I do wonder if they could be a possible fit for Trouba.

Nashville recently traded veteran Ryan McDonagh back to Tampa and has a couple right-handed defensemen heading toward free agency in Tyson Barrie and Alexandre Carrier, leaving holes to fill on its blue line. It also has over $26 million in available space, according to PuckPedia, giving the Predators the sixth-most cap room of any team this offseason. Plus, they have eight selections in the first four rounds of this week’s draft, providing plenty of picks to use in a potential deal.

There have been no firm indications that the Preds are interested, with at least one top-six forward believed to be their top priority. But if Trouba is on their radar, they have all the ingredients to make it work.

Ottawa Senators

Brady Tkachuk is the name many Rangers’ fans are dreaming of, but there doesn’t seem to be much of an appetite on the Senators’ part. If that were to change, the belief is that Drury would be all in.

On the other hand, if upgrading the D corps is on New York’s to-do list, there could be a match.

There few defensemen targets as enticing as Jakob Chychrun when factoring in both upside and cost. The 26-year-old is entering the final year of a deal that carries a reasonable $4.6 million AAV and would immediately slot in as one of the Rangers’ top-four D, bringing the size (6-foot-2, 205 pounds), mobility and puck skills they covet.

The drawback is that there will be competition for his services, which is sure to drive up the asking price.

Utah Hockey Club

The NHL’s newest franchise (formerly the Arizona Coyotes) doesn’t have any defensemen under contract who finished last season in the lineup. That leaves several open spots on the back end and tons of available cap space to fill them − a league-high $40.85 million, to be exact.

They’re one of the few teams that could take on Trouba’s $8 million cap hit without flinching, but there’s a chance the captain would use his modified NTC to veto any move to Salt Lake City. Lindgren doesn’t have that same power, though, and could be dangled for the right deal, as could Zac Jones.

What Utah does have is some under-the-radar forwards who have either one or two years left on their deals, including Nick Schmaltz ($5.85 million AAV), Alex Kerfoot ($3.5 million), Nick Bjugstad ($2.1 million) and Jack McBain ($1.59 million). Bjugstad, in particular, is a target the Rangers have previously shown interest in.

Winnipeg Jets

Arguably the top forward rumored to be available via trade this summer is Nikolaj Ehlers, who’s posted seven seasons with more than 20 goals. He rates as one of the Jets’ best forwards, with consistently strong metrics to back it up, even though some questioned his overall effort this past season.

There’s a lot to like, but there are also reasons to proceed with caution. The 28-year-old winger’s playoff performances have been underwhelming, with 14 points (four goals and 10 assists) in 37 career appearances, and a $6 million AAV for the final year of his contract may be a bit higher than the Rangers would like to go.

Perhaps they’d prefer the younger, cheaper Rutger McGroarty. Reports have surfaced in the past week that the No. 14 overall pick from the 2022 draft wants to be traded, with the 6-foot-1, 205-pounder displaying many traits that should appeal to the Blueshirts.

The 20-year-old has been a high-end producer for both the University of Michigan (52 points in 36 games last season) and Team USA (nine points in seven games while captaining the gold-winning World Juniors squad), earning many of those points by attacking the high-danger areas of the ice. It all adds up to a strong kid with tons of skill who looks pro ready, and we know Drury loves USNTDP products.

The main hurdle will be whether the Rangers have the assets to pull it off. They only have one pick in the first three rounds of this week’s draft and may struggle to match offers from teams with more capital.

Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.